Towards sustainable cooperation in transport

“ Only a few months after the signing of a memorandum of understanding between the two countries on the development of road and rail transport in the Kingdom, Switzerland is more determined than ever to strengthen its bilateral relations with Morocco in the field of transport”. These were the words of Sami Zerelli, President of the CCSM, when introducing the conference-debate on the theme: “What Morocco-Switzerland cooperation in the Transport sector”, held on 26 February at the Mövenpick Hotel in Casablanca. He went on to remind the audience, made up of a number of players from the sector, of the CCSM’s mission: “as a Chamber of Commerce, our role is to identify economic opportunities and to involve the business community in the intergovernmental agreements that are signed”.

For his part, His Excellency Mr Guillaume Scheurer, Ambassador of Switzerland to Morocco, stated that “the two nations enjoy excellent relations and share a common desire to move forward in various sectors, notably in the transport and logistics sector. He added: “Switzerland has enormous experience in planning and building major transport infrastructure. Given this expertise and Morocco’s ambitions in this area, it is entirely natural to intensify this cooperation”.

After this brief introduction, the conference featured presentations by several personalities. One after another, representatives of the Ministry of Equipment, Transport, Logistics and Water, the Société Autoroutes du Maroc, the National Railways Office and Switzerland Global Enterprise took the floor to present their roadmaps.

A clear strategy and guidelines

In his presentation, Ahmed Imzel, Director of Roads at the Ministry of Equipment, Transport, Logistics and Water, highlighted the key role played by his entity in the design and construction of roads at national level. “The road sector has seen impressive growth in recent years. Due to its flexibility, it remains the most widely used by travellers. In Morocco, roads account for around 90% of passenger mobility, and 75% of goods transport excluding phosphate”, the speaker explained. Mr Imzel then presented Morocco’s strategy and guidelines for road transport. A strategy that aims in particular “to guarantee an adequate level of service for road users, to safeguard and enhance the road network as an asset, and to modernise the road network in order to support the country’s economic and social development”.

Noureddine Dib, Director of Road Transport and Road Safety, for his part, went over the outlines of the agreement signed between Switzerland and Morocco, which provides in particular for technical assistance for studies and works, planning, the financing of major infrastructure, sustainable mobility, and the management and maintenance of the road and rail network. “Through this meeting, we are calling on our Swiss counterparts to support us in setting up projects in terms of technical assistance, capacity building and technical support, in order to bring ourselves into line with the regulations in force, as well as in setting up an inspection system for vehicles transporting perishable goods”, the speaker stressed.

On road safety, Noureddine Dib stressed the scourge of traffic accidents, which continue to claim citizens’ lives every day. In this context, certain measures have been put in place to strengthen the arsenal of road checks and enforcement. A system whose objective is to curb irresponsible behaviour ​and to support these efforts with awareness-raising and communication campaigns, the upgrading of infrastructure and assistance to road accident victims.

An indispensable pillar of economic development, motorway infrastructure has contributed significantly to Morocco’s growth over the last 20 years. Mohamed Chouh, Development Director at Autoroutes du Maroc (ADM), pointed out that Morocco has a substantial network of 1,800 km, making it the largest motorway network in North Africa, and that 6 out of 10 Moroccans are directly connected to the motorway. Projects are under way, notably in the Casablanca region with the construction of a Tit Mellil-Berrechid link via Mohammed V airport. Its cost: 1.8 billion dirhams.

Rail, the backbone of sustainable mobility

In the following presentations, the representative of the ONCF, Mr Said Chandid, Director of Strategy and Communication, stressed that rail is the means that best meets our expectations in terms of sustainable mobility. It ensures safety, environmental protection and energy savings. That is why “the ONCF continues to invest between 5 and 7 billion dirhams every year in modernising the existing network in order to increase its capacity and robustness”, insists Mr Chandid. This strategic direction has been accompanied by the construction of the first high-speed line linking the economic capital to Tangier. In its first year of operation, Al Boraq carried more than 3 million passengers with a satisfaction rate of 98%.

In addition, the speaker indicated that the ONCF has put in place a strategy aimed at developing sustainable mobility, enhancing tangible and intangible capital, developing internal performance and creating a railway ecosystem.

Swiss know-how

With its world-renowned expertise and know-how, Switzerland fully intends to share its experience in the field of transport with Morocco. “We are pleased to see that Morocco has made notable progress in several areas. We are therefore proud to make our experience available to Morocco for successful bilateral relations”, said Stefan Barny, Director Global Network at Switzerland Global Enterprise (S-GE). It should be noted that the S-GE network has official offices in 28 countries. Its remit includes promoting exports and providing support to SMEs.

“The aim of my presentation is to encourage the Swiss to come to Morocco and to contribute to upgrading the transport sector. In the international freight transport segment, only one Swiss company operates in Morocco. It is a market that is set to develop more and more, with growth rates that can reach double digits every year. Through the agreement signed between Switzerland and Morocco, we hope that things will accelerate in the right direction”. Noureddine Dib, Director of Road Transport and Road Safety “Morocco has put in place a deployable strategy that responds positively to the needs of the various stakeholders. To this end, the ONCF has taken into account the development of sustainable mobility that considers the economic, environmental and societal dimensions”. Saïd Chandid, Director of Strategy and Communication – ONCF “The Moroccan economy is growing strongly. The reforms undertaken are putting the country on the right path. These conditions create attractive business opportunities for Swiss companies. The purpose of our business trip to Morocco is to take a close look at these developments, and to see to what extent we can develop bilateral relations between Switzerland and Morocco”. Suhail El Obeid, Senior Consultant Africa & Middle East – S-GE